University of Arizona makes their ACHA Debut in Game of the Week vs Grand Canyon
TROY, Mich. – (September 24, 2024) – The state of Arizona has their third American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Women’s Division I team starting their inaugural season this week. Arizona State University was first in 2016-2017, followed by Grand Canyon University in 2017-2018.
In the Wildcats season opener, they will take on Grand Canyon University. These two teams, located just shy of two hours away from each other, will face-off five times this season. In a pre-season coaches ranking, Arizona was ranked #20 with Grand Canyon coming in at #27.
When speaking to Caitlin Hogan, Arizona Head Coach, she had this to say about what it means to her team to be heading into their inaugural season, “The team just finished our first week of practice and went through all different emotions: fear, worry, excitement. After practice ended today, the responding word to end the week is “confident”. Our main goal is to show the ACHA world that Arizona Hockey is synonymous with hard work and relentlessness. Hockey is a game of ups and downs. The only thing you have control over completely is the effort you show on the ice. This is a guarantee with this squad.”
In addition to being members of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA), both teams are members of the Women’s Midwest Collegiate Hockey League (WMCH). Information about the ACHA can be found at achahockey.org and information.
This week’s game is set for Thursday, September 25th at 8:30 PM MDT. The game will be played at the Tucson Convention Center located at 260 S. Church Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85701. The game will also be broadcast on the University of Arizona’s youtube channel. Can’t catch this game, the Wildcats and Lopes will have a rematch on Saturday, September 28th. Grand Canyon will host Arizona at the AZ Ice Arcadia (AZ) at 6:00 pm PDT. They will play again in December and January.
This game is part of our new game of the week series. These games will include featured games, rivalry games, and other key matchups throughout the course of the season. Stay tuned for next week’s matchup!
